Cool Hunting

Recent years have seen several offline products that are a way to enjoy all the digital photos that otherwise end up lost to the inner depths of our hard drives or on Flickr servers. For a mom looking to show off photos, we put together a few options that make for a great Mother's Day gift—also allowing her to boast how amazing her kids are for finding such a clever way to display digital pics. We've also included some of the "no-brainers" that are quality gifts but shine more for your lovingly selected pictures than for innovation. Be sure to check out the recently-launched Moo Notecards as well that we reported here on Cool Hunting earlier this month. (Pictured above left.)

Blurb, currently in beta, is a helpful way to get your photos into a professional quality book. (Pictured above right.) Fully customizable, just download the Blurb Book Smart bookmaking software for a step-by-step guide to format a book featuring your latest travel photos. Include captions, text and logos—Blurb allows you to make virtually any type of book you want. Prices start at $13 for a formatted, bound and delivered book. Order today to get in time for Mother's Day.

Like Blurb, other sites offer services to make your own book, such as Tabblo and Lulu, both recommended for their quality printing and ease-of-use. But if you'd rather leave the production entirely to someone else, try Hammond Editions. (Pictured left.) Culling the talents of a fine art photographer, an award-winning graphic designer and a photography director, Hammond Editions is a team that makes bespoke books to intimately document the people and places in your life. The custom-made editions are portraits—like a generations-old family home or a painter's work and her apartment—taken to the level of an heirloom-quality book. A keepsake of that caliber doesn't come cheap however, Hammond Editions start at $25,000—start saving now for Mother's Day 2010.

Kodak's slowly but surely catching up with the times and offering more and more digital-friendly services. Their services stands out for the clean, modern look and quality construction. (Pictured far right.) Fill a whole album by uploading your photos to view and edit here.

Snapfish also offers an online service allowing users to upload photos to make hardbound books or a paperback version, but their Pocket Books are perfect for portability. (Pictured above left.) May we suggest making a flipbook? $15 for three from Snapfish.

A couple new gadgets making the rounds make carrying around wrinkled paper photos of your loved ones in your wallet a thing of the past. I keep them in my cellphone, but this new digital photo wallet could put them back in a wallet. The removable 1.4" digital photo viewer stores up to 55 color images and is rechargeable. The wallet is fully functional and made of soft Nappa leather. Available for $50 here.

via Gizmodo.

Shiny Shiny recently singled out Brookstone's digital photo keychain, but we're more drawn to the egg-shape and white color of the Royal Key Chain Picture Frame which holds up to 56 photos and has a 1.1-inch display. Pick it up from Amazon or Ambient Weather.